Prosecution Insights
Last updated: July 17, 2026
Application No. 18/672,528

FAULT MANAGED POWER MAINTENANCE MODES

Non-Final OA §102
Filed
May 23, 2024
Examiner
SHECHTMAN, SEAN P
Art Unit
Tech Center
Assignee
Cisco Technology Inc.
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
75%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
11m
Est. Remaining
98%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 75% — above average
75%
Career Allowance Rate
660 granted / 879 resolved
+15.1% vs TC avg
Strong +22% interview lift
Without
With
+22.4%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
3y 1m
Avg Prosecution
30 currently pending
Career history
896
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
5.7%
-34.3% vs TC avg
§103
63.3%
+23.3% vs TC avg
§102
19.6%
-20.4% vs TC avg
§112
5.3%
-34.7% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 879 resolved cases

Office Action

§102
DETAILED ACTION Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA . Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102 In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status. The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action: A person shall be entitled to a patent unless – (a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention. (a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention. Claim(s) 1,19,26, 2-13,20-21 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by EP 3943714 (‘714), supplied by applicant. 714 teaches 1,19,26. A system/method/apparatus (the power generation system in figures 1 to 3) comprising: a power transmitter subsystem configured to transmit power over one or more cables (the generator in par. 17); a power receiver subsystem configured to receive the power over the one or more cables (the consumers and transmission lines in par. 17); a user interface configured to initiate a maintenance mode associated with the power transmitter subsystem and the power receiver subsystem (par. 35 in conjunction with the input/output interface in par. 28), the maintenance mode causing the power transmitter subsystem and power receiver subsystem to enter a power mode to allow for maintenance activity to be performed at the power transmitter subsystem and power receiver subsystem (par. 25 and 35); and an authorization server configured to authorize initiation of the maintenance mode on the power transmitter subsystem and power receiver subsystem (the automatic authorization in par. 45 in conjunction with the server in par. 32); a network interface configured to enable network communications, including communications with a power transmitter subsystem that transmits power over one or more cables, and a power receiver subsystem that receives the power over the one or more cables (par. 35 in conjunction with the input/output interface in par. 28); and one or more computer processors coupled to the network interface, the one or more computer processors configured to: receive a request to initiate a maintenance mode associated with the power transmitter subsystem and the power receiver subsystem (par. 35 in conjunction with the input/output interface in par. 28), the maintenance mode causing the power transmitter subsystem and power receiver subsystem to enter a power mode to allow for maintenance activity to be performed at the power transmitter subsystem and power receiver subsystem (par. 25 and 35); and authorize initiation of the maintenance mode on the power transmitter subsystem and power receiver subsystem (the automatic authorization in par. 45 in conjunction with the server in par. 32). 2. The system of claim 1, wherein the user interface includes a button on a component of the power transmitter subsystem or a component of the power receiver subsystem (paragraphs 28-32). 3. The system of claim 1, wherein the user interface is part of a device that is separate from the power transmitter subsystem or the power receiver subsystem (paragraphs 28-32). 4. The system of claim 3, wherein the authorization server is provisioned with an authorization key pair, and the power transmitter subsystem and power receiver subsystem are configured to store authorization certificates (paragraph 35, 37, 45). 5. The system of claim 1, further comprising a maintenance mode controller that is part of or separate from the power transmitter subsystem or power receiver subsystem and is configured to resolve conflicts between multiple maintenance mode requests made on the power transmitter subsystem or power receiver subsystem (paragraphs 27-37, 39-47). 6. The system of claim 5, wherein the user interface is part of a user device, and wherein: the user device is configured to send to the authorization server a request to initiate the maintenance mode; the authorization server is configured to evaluate the request for approval, and if the request is approved, send to the maintenance mode controller an authorized request to initiate the maintenance mode; and the maintenance mode controller is configured to send to the power transmitter subsystem or the power receiver subsystem a notification of indicating the maintenance mode to be initiated by which power is interrupted according to the maintenance mode (paragraphs 27-37, 39-47). 7. The system of claim 1, wherein the maintenance mode causes the power transmitter subsystem to provide relatively low voltage power to the power receiver subsystem that is safe to touch by a human (paragraph 30,35). 8. The system of claim 1, wherein the maintenance mode causes the power transmitter subsystem to provide power to the power receiver subsystem without any fault detection being performed by the power transmitter subsystem and the power receiver subsystem for a period of time, and at expiration of the period of time, the power transmitter subsystem stops providing power to the power receiver subsystem (paragraphs 25,36). 9. The system of claim 1, wherein the power transmitter subsystem and power receiver subsystem are responsive to a request to disable the maintenance mode and return to a state when the maintenance mode was initiated (Fig. 4, step P4, paragraph 34, 40-44). 10. The system of claim 1, wherein the power transmitter subsystem and power receiver subsystem are responsive to a request to perform a complete restart and reset all states when the maintenance mode is completed (paragraph 37,46). 11. The system of claim 1, wherein the maintenance mode causes the power transmitter subsystem to stop providing the power to the power receiver subsystem without any time limit, and the authorization server is configured to respond to a request to turn the power transmitter subsystem back on to provide the power to the power receiver subsystem (paragraph 30). 12. The system of claim 1, wherein the maintenance mode causes the power transmitter subsystem to stop providing the power to the power receiver subsystem for a period of time, and at expiration of the period of time, the power transmitter subsystem is restarted (paragraph 37,46). 13. The system of claim 1, further comprising a plurality of power receiver subsystems each of which separately receives power from the power transmitter subsystem (paragraph 17). 20. The method of claim 19, wherein initiating includes receiving an input via a button on a component of the power transmitter subsystem or the power receiver subsystem (paragraph 28,32). 21. The method of claim 19, wherein initiating includes receiving an input from a device that is separate from the power transmitter subsystem or the power receiver subsystem (paragraphs 28-32). Allowable Subject Matter Claim 14-18, 22-25, 27-30 objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims. Conclusion Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to SEAN P SHECHTMAN whose telephone number is (571)272-3754. The examiner can normally be reached 9:30am-6:00pm, M-F. Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice. If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, William Kraig can be reached at 571-272-8660. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300. Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000. /Sean Shechtman/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2896
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

May 23, 2024
Application Filed
Jun 03, 2026
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §102 (current)

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Study what changed to get past this examiner. Based on 5 most recent grants.

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Prosecution Projections

1-2
Expected OA Rounds
75%
Grant Probability
98%
With Interview (+22.4%)
3y 1m (~11m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 879 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance rate.

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